The field of this invention relates to the protection of floor safes or other similarly mounted devices.
Safes for homes or businesses are typically mounted either in a wall or a floor. Wall safes are particularly subject to the hazards of fire but, are not subject to water damage so long as mounted sufficiently high from the floor. On the other hand, floor safes are not as susceptible to damage from fire since the floor foundation does not typically reach the hot temperature found in the remainder of a burning building. But, floor safes are subject to water intrusion through the operable top. One solution is to make the floor safe opening water-tight. But, the type of sealing that makes the door of the floor safe water-tight also makes it air-tight. Making the safe air-tight causes problems with moisture damage to valuables contained in the safe and with air expansion within the safe which may occur from fire or simply a hot environment. Air expansion may actually cause a safe top to blow off.
During a search conducted in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the most pertinent reference to this invention found was U.S. Pat. No. 3,945,329 of Bywater. The Bywater patent discloses a water barrier lid which is adapted for mounting over the top of the floor safe and includes a sealing O-ring extending about the circular periphery of a relatively rigid rim, the O-ring sealably engaging an inner surface of the case of the floor safe. U.S. Pat. No. 3,747,541 discloses a safe top which includes a door having a pair of axially spaced apart circular plates having an expandable cylindrical collar disposed between the plates; a screw extends through the plate and is rotatable to draw the plates closer together and thereby expand the cylindrical collar into sealing engagement against the side of the safe casing. Other U.S. patents found in the search include U.S. Pat. No. 2,935,955 which is directed to a wall safe and U.S. Pat. No. 3,490,177 which is directed to a hatch.